To the decision makers of Sacramento State:

I want to take this opportunity to encourage the university, my respected alma mater, to make the proper decision and reserve space on the main campus of Sacramento State for the State Hornet newspaper. I attended Sacramento State from 2001-2005, spending most of my time on the staff of the State Hornet, serving one year as the newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief. After graduation, I have gone on to work in journalism as an NBA reporter for more than a decade. Now, I am head of content for LeBron James’s digital platform, UNINTERRUPTED.

My greatest learning experience while at the university was my time with the State Hornet. Truthfully, it felt like a full-time job in addition to my courses. My days started in the newsroom, and I moved from lecture back to the newsroom, lecture back to the newsroom, throughout the day. Having an on-campus newspaper, which truly functions as part of the community for those on staff as well as for interview subjects, lends to the type of collegiate atmosphere students want to be a part of. When I was at Sac State, the biggest knock on the school was that it was a commuter campus. This type of decision further drives truth into that notion. The campus newspaper must be at the center of campus life, as it was for me. Without a home base among my day, there is absolutely no way I would have been able to work at the State Hornet; that community would have been lost without question.

Furthermore, we must never depress the powerful role of journalism and the increasing need for quality young journalists. When you examine the current climate of American media and its role in the political and cultural landscape of our country, it is evident that biased, dysfunctional media has done damage. Our faculty adviser at the time, Professor Mark Ludwig, taught true objective journalism with firm ethical standards that I believe myself, and others I came up with, have never forgotten. That’s what we need. Keeping the State Hornet on campus continues to drive home that we firmly consider journalism as a crucial part of what makes America function. With recent events following the election, I have watched journalism colleagues present the notion that more money must be spent by consumers assuring that proper watchdogs still exist, and I would be incredibly disappointed to learn our university was not taking the long-standing tradition of the State Hornet seriously.

Please hear my feedback and reach out with any questions.

Respectfully,

Jimmy Spencer